Weighing the hours in Chicago

There's been quite an uproar over Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's plan to increase Chicago Public Schools' teacher workday while giving what many teachers consider too small a pay raise. It's clearly a major reason why teachers voted overwhelmingly in favor of authorizing a strike should negotiations with the district break down.

Just how significant is the increase in hours proposed by the district? Our Tr3 database can provide some needed context to this issue. If the district does manage to extend the school day from seven hours to seven hours and 40 minutes, Chicago will go from having a workday that's shorter than most peer districts' to one that's among the longest.

Of the 85 Tr3 districts for which we have teacher workday data, 73 have workdays that are seven hours or longer, but only 22 have workdays of seven hours and 45 minutes or more. The district's proposal would put Chicago close to the upper quartile in the amount of time teachers spend with their colleagues and students.